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Here we are, only a few minutes away from the start of the last race of the 2011 Formula 1 season. As always, the season ends with a race on the Interlagos circuit in São Paulo, Brazil. Sebastian Vettel won the drivers world championship title a few races back, while Red Bull took the constructors world championship trophy home with them after the subsequent race. But that the champions have already been decided this year doesn’t bother the Brazilian spectators. They love Formula 1.

And why shouldn’t they? Some of the greatest Formula drivers have been from Brazil and three out of 24 drivers on the grid today are Brazilians. Unfortunately, none of them will be competing for a podium finish: Felipe Massa hasn’t been able to finish any higher than 5th this season, Rubens Barrichello is 39 years old and is driving a Williams that has still to show that it can be competitive and Bruno Senna still has a long way to go before he can step up on the podium.

The race is now on; it takes a while to write anything when I’m simultaneously following the BBC One broadcast from São Paulo. Not surprisingly, Sebastian Vettel is leading from pole position and pulling away from the pack. To quote BBC commentator Martin Brundle: “How does he do it? How? Does? He? Do? It?”. Why? He is a great driver in a great piece of machinery.

Continue reading "The Last Race." →

Only one day left to the weekend now and there’s still room for a couple more Formula 1 races before the season is over. This time the teams have moved to India, which is a first time visit for Formula 1. Many of the drivers, team members and other people associated with Formula 1 in one way or another are on Twitter and they all seem very excited with everything. Not just the track, but New Delhi and all of India in general.

A lot of great things have been said about the track. The width of the track varies and turn 10 is supposedly one of the most spectacular turns on any circuit. Thanks to the wonders of modern technology – a BlackBerry and the interwebs – it’s possible for us commoners to get a glimpse of the track even before the drivers have had a chance to test their cars there. Trackside Operations Director at Lotus Renault GP, Alan Permane, is an eager Twitterer and has been kind enough to post a lot of pictures from a walk around the circuit. Here are the pictures with his own comments and links to the original pictures:

Continue reading "India." →

It’s been a year since my last proper Formula 1 entry. That of course does not mean I haven’t followed this year’s races all the way from every Q1 to the every checkered flag, I just haven’t had the time to bother you with my F1 ramblings.

Here’s a quick recap of the 2011 season so far: Renault’s Robert Kubica was seriously injured in a rally crash even before the season started and whether or not he will ever return to F1 is being decided these days. The first race of the season, in Bahrain, was canceled because of the political situation in the country at the time. Pirelli is providing the tires this year. The introduction of DRS has proven absolutely genius in terms of the number of overtakes per race, but some argue that overtaking is now actually too easy on some tracks. Hamilton and Massa has not been too focused on racing this year, but far more interested in playing bumper cars and then throwing crap at each other after each race. Hamilton is pretty sure he gets penalized for his actions on the track because he’s black. Alonso is still the driver that never, ever gives up. Michael Schumacher’s F1 comeback is still a failure and anyone has yet to be surprised about that. There are some really interesting, young and up-and-coming drivers on the grid this year, like Paul Di Resta and Sergio Perez. And even though there are four races left, Red Bull’s German wonder boy Sebastian Vettel has already secured the world championship title, making him the youngest ever double World Champion and also the youngest back-to-back Champion.

The speed, the technology, the cars, the drivers, the drama and the potential for massive crashes! How is it possible not to love this sport?

Continue reading "Round and Round We Go." →

The Formula One race from Montréal was red flagged for a good two hours and right now we’re running behind the safety car. I used the time to dig up a few more one-liners for you. Enjoy.

  • “Happiness is not something ready made. It comes from your own actions.” — Dalai Lama
  • “In the practice of tolerance, one’s enemy is the best teacher.” — Dalai Lama
  • “Open your arms to change, but don’t let go of your values.” — Dalai Lama
  • “Fear doesn’t exist anywhere except in the mind.” — Dale Carnegie
  • “Most of us have for more courage than we ever dreamed possible.” — Dale Carnegie
  • “You never achieve success unless you like what you are doing.” — Dale Carnegie
  • “The cure for boredom in curiosity. There is no cure for curiosity.” — Dorothy Parker
  • “I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by.” — Douglas Adams
  • “It is not fair to ask of others what you are not willing to do yourself.” — Eleanor Roosevelt
  • “No leader can be too far ahead of his followers.” — Eleanor Roosevelt
  • “No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.” — Eleanor Roosevelt
  • “What one has to do usually can be done.” — Eleanor Roosevelt
  • “You always admire what you really don’t understand.” — Eleanor Roosevelt
  • “Truth is like the sun. You can shut it out for a time, but it ain’t going away.” — Elvis Presley
  • “Men are not prisoners of fate, but only prisoners of their own minds.” — Franklin D. Roosevelt
  • “There are many ways of going forward, but only one way of standing still.” — Franklin D. Roosevelt
  • “A politician divides mankind into two classes: Tools and enemies.” — Friedrich Nietzsche
  • “For every man there exists a bait which he cannot resist swallowing.” — Friedrich Nietzsche
  • “He who has a why to live can bear with almost any who.” — Friedrich Nietzsche
  • “The lonely one offers his hand too quickly to whomever he encounters.” — Friedrich Nietzsche
  • “There are no eternal facts, as there are no absolute truths.” — Friedrich Nietzsche
  • “There are no facts, only interpretations.” — Friedrich Nietzsche
  • “To do great things is difficult, but to command great things is more difficult.” — Friedrich Nietzsche
  • “When a hundred men stand together, each of them loses his mind and gets another one.” — Friedrich Nietzsche
  • “Leisure is being allowed to do nothing.” — G.K. Chesterton
  • “A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable, but more useful than a life spent doing nothing.” — George Bernhard Shaw
  • “My way of joking is to tell the truth. It’s the funniest joke in the world.” — George Bernhard Shaw
  • “People who say it cannot be done should not interrupt those who are doing it.” — George Bernhard Shaw
  • “Those who can not change their minds can not change anything.” — George Bernhard Shaw
  • “Those who dance are considered insane by those who cannot hear the music.” — George Carlin
  • “It is better to be alone than in bad company.” — George Washington
  • “As soon as you trust yourself, you will know how to live.” — Goethe
  • “Enjoy when you can, and endure when you must.” — Goethe
  • “I have nothing but respect for you – and not much of it.” — Groucho Marx
  • “I never forget a face, but in your case I’ll be glad to make an exception.” — Groucho Marx
  • “Military justice is to justice what military music is to music.” — Groucho Marx
  • “Yesterday is dead, tomorrow hasn’t arrived yet. I have just one day, and I’m going to be happy in it.” — Groucho Marx
  • “Advertising is legalized lying.” — H.G. Wells
  • “If we don’t end war, war will end us.” — H.G. Wells
  • “Our true nationality is mankind.” — H.G. Wells
  • “Chop your own wood and it will warm you twice.” — Henry Ford
  • “Nothing is particularly hard if you divide it into small jobs.” — Henry Ford
  • “The only real mistake is the one from where we learn nothing.” — Henry Ford
  • “Vision without execution is just hallucination.” — Henry Ford
  • “Whether you think you can, or think you can’t — you’re right.” — Henry Ford

The last Formula 1 race of the 2010 season came and went and you probably expected an entry about the event, but, as opposed to the race, the entry never came. To summarize the race weekend, which was last weekend, very quickly; Sebastian Vettel won the race and the championship, the race was never very exciting and Herman Tilke should seriously consider another career than motor racing circuit designer because the only Formula 1 driver who is crazy enough to overtake on his tracks is Kamui “Kamikaze” Kobayashi. The 2011 season starts March 11 next year – meaning that my weekends are open again until then.

Well, at least after we’ve cleared December. It’s traditionally a month when a lot of things happen, and this year seems to be no exception. From the top of my mind comes the annual Christmas party at Terje and Inger’s place where we’ll make fun of Terje because he eats like there is no tomorrow, the Christmas party with BEKK where people will dance on every table and of course the semi-annual gingerbread bonanza in our humble apartment. Last year, Anniken was out and about on her South American tour, but this year she’s where she should be – not in South America. Instead of cramming everything in on a Friday evening, we’re having an open house on a Saturday so that people can just come and go as they please. People are getting kids left and right these days and it just seemed like a better arrangement for them.

I used the Android gingerbread man in the invite, but I doubt anyone noticed. It’s my small contribution in the struggle to wake up the Apple sheep.

In other and totally unrelated news I’ve now changed the profile picture I used on this site. Even though the portrait shot by Life Mary was one of the better pictures taken of me, it was getting old and a little change was needed. To spare you from seeing yet another image taken in a bathroom mirror, I got help from Tray and Matt and their South Park avatar creator at South Park Studios. Life Mary’s picture looked a lot more like me than the avatar, though.

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2010: Nexus One?
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